The True Priestess
by staryu
Summary: The Suzaku Seven unexpectedly encounters someone in their temple.


Chattering came from outside the door, but the woman paid them no mind. Instead, she continued to kneel on the floor, her hands held together to form a peculiar symbol. The door finally opened, and the words came out clearer.

"Seriously, those Seiryu warriors are a joke! They couldn't even handle being thrown a boulder!"

"Nuriko, not anyone has your crazy strength," a little boy with his hair in a ponytail said.

The one called Nuriko harrumphed, and then turned her (or was it his?) head, and suddenly spotted the woman kneeling. She (or was it he?) elbowed the others, who immediately became quiet.

"Eh? Who are you?" A young man with flaming red hair said.

"Tasuki!" The little boy admonished.

"What, Chiriko? She's not from here! For all we know, she's from Kuto!" Tasuki growled out.

"But you didn't have to be rude! You…"

As they argued, the woman stood up and turned around, and what they saw made their mouths drop. She was a stunningly beautiful young woman, clad in white robes with red lining. Her black hair had purple highlights, which seemed to be almost the same shade as her eyes.

"I'm Hino Rei. I'm the…"

"Evil Seiryu villain!" Tasuki yelled, interrupting her. "Begone!" And he flourished his fan, and drew it down, sending a wave of fire to the girl. The other Suzaku warriors yelled, and then screamed again when the flame suddenly split, flew up in the air, and then merged to form a single ball of flame that floated above one hand of the girl named Rei.

"Really, is there a need for that?" Rei asked mildly, albeit a tinge confused. "I'm not looking for a fight, I'm just…"

"Look, who are you, really?" Nuriko said, more frustrated than angry. She (or was it he?) effortlessly slung Tasuki over the shoulder, who passed out of sheer shock of having his sacred flame deflected.

"I'm a priestess of Suzaku," Rei said simply.

If she thought that honesty was the best approach to talk to these people, she was wrong. A dark-haired girl suddenly emerged from behind Nuriko, sputtering furiously.

"What do you mean you're the priestess! I'm _the_ priestess of Suzaku!" The girl practically screamed at her.

Rei gave a sigh of irritation. "Great Suzaku, not another odango-head," she muttered, half to herself.

"Who are you calling an odango-head?!" The other girl shrieked.

Rei rolled her eyes. "Miss, I don't know who you are, but I don't like people who challenge my duties."

The girl's chin jutted forward stubbornly. "Then prove you're a priestess."

Rei sighed again. "Okay, then." She turned to the others. "Suzaku is a great bird of fire, right?" The other warriors cautiously nodded. "As you can see, I have control over fire," and she nodded at the fireball floating above her hand, which bobbed in acknowledgement. "I'm psychic. I can also do fire readings. And I can use these," and she takes out several odango scrolls from her sleeve, "As a weapon. All traits of a Suzaku priestess. What about you? What can you do?" She asked sweetly.

The Suzaku warriors' heads snapped to Miaka's direction. She gulped, and then blushed. Accusatory eyes from the warriors drilled holes in her head. "Er…" she muttered, playing with her hands. "I have these warriors to protect me!" She said defensively.

Rei quirked an eyebrow. "You rely on men to protect you?" She inquired.

"Yes!" A slight cough from Nuriko, and Miaka reddened slightly, but stood her ground.

Rei shook her head. "Miss, I can protect myself. I don't need men, and I especially won't have children guard me. A priestess would never do that." Ignoring the sputtering of Miaka and Chiriko, she turned to the group. "Look, I'm not here to fight. I just came here to pray to Suzaku.. If this is a private temple, I'm sorry for intruding, I thought it was open to the public. I'll go now." And she turned around and headed for the door.

"Wait!"

Rei turned around. Miraculously, Tasuki has gotten to his feet and was racing towards her. Her eyes widened when she saw Tasuki's filled with admiration. "What?"

"You! You have control over fire! Stay with me! I can fan the flames for our love!" Tasuki blurted out, taking out his diamond fan to emphasize his words.

"Uh, no."

"Please! I'll make you happy! I can steal things for you, just… AH!"

Shaking her head, Rei headed out for the door. A pity. That was a good ball of fire.

After she left, the people left in the room were quiet, save for the sizzling that came from Tasuki.

"So…" Nuriko finally spoke, turning to Miaka. "Are you sure you're the real priestess?"

"NU-RI-KO!"


End file.
